OUR HISTORY
On October 27th 1905 Fochabers Public Institute was opened for the first time to the people of Fochabers and district at a total cost of £2600.
The chairman at the opening meeting was the 7th Duke of Richmond and Gordon supported by a distinguished platform party.
The full band of the Royal Highlanders (the Black Watch) provided stirring music, the hall that night was lighted by electricity- the first building in the village to have the “new light”.
On 16th December 1960 the new small hall now Christie room, kitchen and toilets were built at a cost of £5335.
The hall over a number of years was used to the full throughout the year.
By 2005 the hall was struggling to survive and lack of investment resulted in poor state of repair.
In 2012 Moray Council carried out a public consultation, 70% went for the option of an asset transfer.
From that time the Village Association worked on the asset transfer with consultations, meetings and feasibility studies resulting in a 60 page business case and 100 pages of appendix’s. At the same time were completing designs for the works and detailed drawings for planning..
Eventually the asset transfer was agreed by Moray Council after a close council vote and was transferred In June 2015 with the Village Association securing payment of £150,000 along with the hall moving quickly to set up a current business structure, raising funds and appointing contractors.
Works started September 2016 and the refurbished Institute was re-opened in April 2017.
300 club history
The 300 club was set up in 2015 when the Fochabers village association took over the ownership of the Fochabers public institute.
Previously any repairs or replacements that were needed were paid for by the late George Christie meaning any previous hall committee did not need a maintenance fund. Therefore the current committee decided to set up one in the form of the 300 club and obtained the appropriate gaming licence to allow members of the public (over 18) to be part of the hall and its upkeep.
The annual fee of £60 allows us to have 2 draws taking place in July and December. 25% of the gross annual income is given out as prizes.
A maximum of 300 members would yield prizes of:
5 winners of £150
2 winners of £250
2 winners of £500
prizes dependant on member numbers.
